HUD recognizes UB for downtown community outreach programs

The Department of Housing and Urban Development cites UB 2020
and the plan to move the medical school downtown as key elements of
the university's impact on neighborhoods around the Buffalo Niagara
Medical Campus. Photo: Douglas Levere

“Our model has always been to work with the community in addressing their needs and wants. This starts with building trust, which can be easily attained through transparency and communication.”

Linwood Roberts

Office of Community Relations

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has cited
UB as a national best practice for its community outreach efforts
in neighborhoods around the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus
(BNMC).

“UB is leading redevelopment efforts in distressed
neighborhoods near downtown Buffalo, spurring the growth of the
regional economy and building neighborhood and regional
capacity,” notes an article that appears on HUD USER, an
informational website for housing and community development
researchers, academics, policymakers and the public published by
HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research.

The article points to the UB 2020 initiative and the plan to
move the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences downtown as the
backbone for UB’s community impact, noting that UB is
“lending its expertise to local government and empowering
residents to shape their communities from the neighborhood to the
regional level.”

The article also notes the work of UB’s Office of
Community Relations to engage residents in two-way communication
and provide information about UB’s programs and jobs that
will be created by the university’s expansion downtown.

“Our model has always been to work with the community in
addressing their needs and wants,” says Linwood Roberts, UB
community relations director. “This starts with building
trust, which can be easily attained through transparency and
communication.”

The article cites UB programs that include:

A plan by UB and the city of Buffalo to create additional
commercial and residential development in the neighborhoods
surrounding the BNMC.

“Opening Economic Opportunity Around UB’s Growing
Downtown Presence,” a report by the Economic Opportunity
Panel, a group of faculty, residents, city officials and other
stakeholders to develop recommendations for continual engagement
and communication with the neighborhood and expand access to jobs
and other business opportunities for residents.

A partnership with the Buffalo Public Schools to improve the
quality of education, with UB graduate students and students from
the Futures Academy participating in neighborhood projects to
demonstrate the connection between public policy decisions and the
future of the neighborhood.

The East Side Neighborhood Transformation Project, which helps
create sustainable affordable housing and link inner city education
to the development of the Fruit Belt neighborhood. The project led
to creation of the CAO-UB Community Wellness and Neighborhood
Development Center, which helps residents find information on jobs,
health, education and training, and provides such services as
tax-preparation assistance, financial and legal aid, youth programs
and case management provided by certified social workers.

“Active, Committed, Conscientious Training (ACT)
Empowerment,” a team-building, problem-solving,
decision-making training program for business owners and residents;
the 24 ACT graduates have since formed the Orchard Community
Initiative to help residents, businesses and organizations address
common issues in the Fruit Belt.

The Perry Choice Neighborhood redevelopment plan to study how
best to transform a distressed neighborhood by integrating public
housing into the neighborhood through an expanded street network
and new parks, as well as a revitalized residential corridor.

The article notes that UB has worked actively with local
governments to help plan and shape the direction of the city and
the region, with the university’s influence being felt
especially on the city’s plans for its downtown, waterfront
and parks system, as well as work with the Western New York
Regional Economic Development Council to administer individual
government grants.

Additional assistance to local government includes the Regional
Plan for Sustainable Development of Erie and Niagara counties, a
consortium including UB and local nonprofit and public
organizations to provide research and technical assistance to local
governments on issues such as housing, transportation systems,
economic development and food security, leading to better policy
decisions.

The article makes clear that UB’s involvement downtown is
a university-wide effort involving diverse programs including, in
addition to the Office of Community Relations, the Center for Urban
Studies, the School of Architecture and Planning, the Urban Design
Project and the Regional Institute.

Also involved is UB’s Office of the Vice Provost for
Educational Collaboration and Engagement, which focuses on pathways
to education, training and employment, including:

Upward Bound, a federally funded program designed to increase
the number of disadvantaged students with demonstrated potential to
enroll in and graduate from college.

Liberty Partnerships Program, a state-funded program aimed at
helping at-risk students stay in school by offering student
services, including academic counseling and college application
assistance.

Science and Technology Enrichment Program (STEP), a statewide
initiative to encourage minority and economically disadvantaged
students to pursue careers in medicine and other health-related
professions and the science, technology, engineering and math
(STEM) fields.

The Erie Niagara Area Health Education Center, another
initiative that introduces students to the field of health
care.

“Moving forward, UB continues to serve Buffalo’s
neighborhoods, the city at large and the region — not only by
aligning the university’s expansion with the area’s
development needs, but also by ensuring that residents have the
ability to effect positive change,” the HUD article
notes.